Flat-iron.



H. G. HECKMANN.

FLAT IRON.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 25. 1917.

1 ,277,921 Patented Sept. 3, 1918.

z INVENTOI? J L x. //J x 52 ATTORNEY earns I earn.

HARRY G. HECKMANN, OF BING-HAIVIION, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO THE CENTRAL FLATIRON MFG. 00., OF JOHNSON CITY, NEW YORK, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

FLAT-IRON.

Specification of Letters Iatent.

Patented Sept. 3, 1918 Application filed January 25, 1917. Serial No. 144,517.

To all whom it may concern;

it known that I, HARRY G. Hnoli MANN, a citizen of the United States, residin'g'at Binghamton, in the county of Broome and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Flat- Trons, of which the-following is a specification.

This invention relates to fiat-irons which are heated by numerous ets of flame maintained in an internal combustion chamber along a burner tube extending the greater part of the length of such flat-irons.

In constructing fiat-irons of this character it has been the general practiceto provide a continuous open channel formed in the base below and parallel to the length of the lnirner-tube for conducting air to the flame jets to contribute to the" combustion thereat. Correspondiugly disposed rows of independent air supply holes have also been employed. Such channels and holes have been connected with the outside air through ducts of various forms and relative arrangements, none of which have secured completeand nniforn'ily distributed combustion at said flame jets during the sudden and jerky movements to which such irons'are subjected during use. v

This principal object. of this invention is to provide a structure which is so formed that the air will be so delivered to the cham-, ber that the combustion therein will be disturbed to a minimum extent as a result of the intended movements of a flat-iron.

tlther objects are toprovide such construction as will produce a fiat-iron which is more efficient, uniform in action, and economical in manufacture than those previously devised.

Still other objects appear in the following specification, some being obvious and others being hereinafter specifically pointed out.

This invention consists of certain features of construction and relative arrangement of parts which can be more readily understood upon reference to the annexed drawing, in which:

Figure l is a perspective View of a fiatiron embodying this invention;

Fig. 2 is a plan View of the interior of the body of the flat-iron shown in Fig. l, the

air ducts in the base being indicated by dotted lines;

Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section of the flatiron shown in Figs. 1 and 2 taken on line 33 of Fig. 2: and l r Fig. 4 is an enlarged transverse section of the. burner-tube shown in Fig. 3. 7

Similar reference characters denote corresponding parts throughout] Referring to Figs. land 3,-the body 2 1 has the cover 22 mounted thereon and the handle 23 is carried by the strap 24 which is secured tosaid cover 22 by means of the screws 25. The body 21 comprises a bottom and suitable walls so arranged as to form a combustion chamber, through the rear wall of which a suitable opening is provided through which the burner-tube. 26 enters. The forward end of the burner-tube 26rests in the recess 30 formed in the front end of the combustionchamber, said tube being secured in position, in the opening provided therefor in the rear wall of the combustion chamber, by means of the set screw 29.

To'the outer end of the tube 26 is attached the hose nipple 27 which is provided with suitable air-inlet openings 28, and the portion of the tube 2'? which is located within the combustion chamber has flame-jet holes 31 so positioned therein as to cause flamejets which issue therefrom to impinge against the bottom of the combustion chamber along lines located at either side of and adjacent to the longitudinal center line thereof. 7

The air-distributing holes 32 are disposed along the bottom of the combustion chamber substantially midway between the lines along which the flame-jets impinge. The air-inlet openings 51, 52, 53, 54 and 55 are distributed along one side of the body' 2l near the lower edge thereof as shown in Fig. 1, and the air-inlet openings 41, 42, 43, 44 and 45 are correspondingly located on the other side of the iron, and ducts are formed between these air-inlet openings and the air-distributing holes 32, as 1110161331? ticularly shown by dotted lines in Fig. .2. These ducts are somewhat greater in crosssectional area than the air-distributing holes with which they communicate.

Three ducts diverge from each of the airinlet openings 41, 42, 43, 44, 51, 52, 53, and i 54-, one of which ducts extends transversely to the length thereof, one duct slanting forwardly and one duct slanting rearwardly.

correspondingly connecting air-inlet openings 53, 5 t and 55. Other air-inlet openings are similarly connected.

No rearwardly slanting ducts leave the air-inlet openings 1-5 and The forwardly slanting duets extending from air-inlet openings all and 51 meet under the most forwardly positioned air-distribution hole 32, but all of the other ducts extend in substantially straight lines between air-inlet openings located onoppositesides of the flat-iron body, in front of, behind, and directly opposite one another. Thus an arrangement of these air ducts is provided comprising straight lines and short distances between openings leading thereto, which facilitates economical production. If these ducts are to be produced in the process of casting, a core may be provided which ill be anchored in core-prints in the greensand at each of the points where bosses project from the core to form the openings 32, and the portions of such core which form the opeuii'igs ll to 45 and51 to 55 may be extended into the green-sand beyond the outline of the flat-iron body and there gated together, thus providing a very rigid and stable core, well anchored in the greensand at frequent intervals, and thereby held against floating out of position when the metal is poured into the mold, and minimizing manufacturing waste through defective castings.

If it is desired to produce the airducts by machining them in a solid flat-iron base, it is evident that the straight line formation of the arrangement of ducts which I have shown and described readily lends itself to the process of boring or drilling such ducts from the outside of the body and boring or drilling air-distributing holes communicating therewith.

The pairs of flame-jet holes 31 and the air-distributing holes 32 are shown equal in number and symmetrical in arrangement,

and while I have found this number and arrangement to be desirable under certain circumstances, I have also found that such symmetry and similarity need not be ad hered to in all cases, but that good results may be obtained so long as the cross-sectional area of the air-inlet holes, ducts, and air-distrilniting holes bear proper relation one to another and sufficiently exceed the area of the flame-jet holes 31 in the burnertube 26.

The system of ducts indicated by'the dotted lines in Fig. 2 have such intercommunication therebetween as to collectively constitute, in effect, an airchannel connecting all of the air-inlet holes and all of the airdistributing holes.

Considered in this sense, such air-channel has the wing-walls or transverse partitions (31 to (38 inclusive formed along the longitudinal sides thereof, and has the centrally disposed transverse partitions 71 to 79 inclusive, the ends of which are interposed between and transversely overlap the ends of said wing-wall partitions 61 to 68 inclusive.

The partitions 61 to 68 and 71 to 79 will be hereinafter referred to as baflie walls, as these walls obstruct and deflect such longitudinal shifts of air, in said air-chamber, as tend to occur during the movements incident to the ordinary use of the flat-iron. itheut these baffle walls or partitions, air would leave air-inlet openings at the rear of the iron when the iron was moved forward rapidly and would leave air-inlet openings near the front of the iron when the iron was m ved rapidly backward, thus tending to deflect flames and very hot gases out of these openings. These baffle walls or partitions further assist in preventing the production of excessive air pressure at one end of the combustion chamber and an insufficient air pressure the other end of the combustion chamber when a fiat-iron is rapidly moved backward and forward. Such inequalities of air pressure tend to extinguish flame-jets at the end of the iron where the air pressure is excessive and to increase the flow ofthe fuel. through the flame-jet holes at the end of the combustion chamber where the air pressure is insufficient, so that unconsumed fuel will escape from the extinguished jets before they are re-lighted from adjoining jets, and partly consumed or unconsumed fuel gases will leave the end of .the chamber where the air pressure is insutlicient, on account of the excessive flow of fuel which occurs in that place at. a time when there is an insufficient supply of air to support proper combustion.

T have found that, in fiat-irons having such a system of the air-inlet holes, ducts, and air-distributing holes as shown and already described, the air is carried to the flame-jets with a greater degree of uniformity, in spite of any sudden rapid or jerky moven'ients of these irons, than in flat-irons having any other form of air supply structure with which I am acquainted.

When a flatiron embodying my invention is suddenly moved forward, the air pressure is highest in the ducts communicating with the openings .1 and 51, thus maintaining an adequate supply of air in the front portion of the combustion chamber, and thereby offsetting the tendency incidental to the inertia of the air in the combustion chamber toward a rarefication of the atmosphere in this place, which rarefication is greatly intensified in types of fiat-irons employing an open longitudinal base-channel for the air supply thereof. It will be noted that the airdistributing holes 32 open into these ducts substantially intermediate the ends thereof, and, in'the instance of the'slanting ducts,

' bustion chamber, and without requiring consumption of an excessive amount of fuel in.

order to maintain all parts of the working face of the flat-iron at a unlform and sat1sfactory temperature. 1

In view of the foregolng explanations, it will be seen that a broad feature of this 111- vention comprlses interposed overlapping obstructions or baflle-Walls positioned in an air-channel connecting a plurality of air-inlet holes and a plurality of air-distributing holes so as to oppose longitudinalshifts of air therein, while an arrangement of intersecting ducts, such as that shown, forms a specificfeature of this invention.

A slot 33 is shown on one side of the flatiron in Fig. 1 and a corresponding slot 34 is shown on the other side of the fiat-iron in Fig. 3, said slots being situated between the flat-iron body 21 and the cover 22, being of tapering form, and extending practically to the front wall of the combustion chamber. While these openings may be of shapes other than that shown by the drawings, I have found that uniformity of combustion and efficient heating of the flat-iron are substantially promoted by decreasing the area of these openings as they approach the front end of the combustion chamber, but nevertheless extending these openings substantially to the front end of the combustion chamber, so as to eliminate a pocket of partially consumed and unconsumed fuel, such as tends to form near the front end of such a combustion chamber when a flat-iron of this character is subjected to sudden or rapid rearward movement.

The outlet 35 is provided between the body 21 and the cover 22 in the rear wall of the combustion chamber for the purpose of allowing the products of combustion to freely escape therefrom during the forward movement of the flat-iron.

In order to enable the front end of the cover of the fiat-iron to be pleasingly formed and securely attachedto the body while permitting the openings 33 and 34 to extend,

substantially to the front wall ofthe com bustion chamber, I provide a downwardly extending lug 36 having the forwardly extending dowel 37 formed thereon, a recess being provided in the front wall of the combustion chamber of thebody 21 to receive said dowel as shown in Fig. 3. The rear endof the cover 22 is secured to the body 21 by means of the screws 38 and 39.

In addition to the pleasing appearanceresulting from the downwardly slanting front end of the cover,this formation of the cover cooperates with the other features of construction already described, as it acts to greatly decrease the tendency toward an inrush of air at the front end of the openings 33 and 34 when the iron is moved rapidly forward, by upwardly diverting the air situated immediately in front of these openings instead of horizontally directing such air in the plane of said openings at either side of the body, as is done in flat-irons heretofore devised. The outside air pressure exerted through the front ends of these openings when the lron is moved forward rapidly,

thus materially decreasechanda better opportunity is thereby afiorded for the prod-- nets of combustion to escape from the combustion chamber during such movement.

In view of the foregoing description, it is sign, construction and arrangement of parts may be madewithout departing from the spirit of this invention.

hat I claim and desire to secure by' Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. In a flat-iron havlng an internal combustion chamber comprising inclosing walls, I base and cover :a perforated burner-tube w1th1n said chamber, suitable openings in the upper part of said chamber for permitting the escape of the products of combustion therefrom, and air supply ducts insaid base extending in substantially continuous straight lines transversely and slantingly from side to 'side thereof, converging in groups at openings in the sides of said base, and communicating with the interior of said combustion chamber- 2. In a flat-iron having an internal combustion chamber comprising inclosing walls, base and cover :a perforated burner-tube contained w1th1n and extending along the length of said chamber, suitable openings in the upper part of said chamber for permit- I ting the escape of the products of combustion therefrom, air-distributing holes formed in the upper surface ofsaid base, air-inlet openings along both sides'of said base, a plurality of ducts extending from respective air-inlet openings on either side of said base to a plurality of the air-inlet openings on the opposite side there0f,each duct communicating with an air-distributing hole situated substantially intermediate of the ends thereof.

3. In a flat-iron having an internal combustion chamber comprising inclosing walls, base and cover :a perforated burner-tube contained within and extending along the length of said chamber, suitable openings in the upper part of said chamber for permitting the escape of the products of combustion therefrom, air-inlet openings, air ducts, and air-distributing holes being formed in said base, individual air-inlet openings having two or more of said ducts leading there from to a corresponding number of distributing holes and. to a plurality of the other of said air-inlet openings.

' 4. In a flat-iron having an internal combustion chamber comprising inclosing walls, base and cover :a perforated burner-tube contained within and extending along the length of said chamber, suitable openingsin the upper part of said chamber for permitting the escape of the products of combustion therefrom, and air ducts in said base communicating with the interior of said chamber, some of which ducts extend transversely and others of which ducts extend slantingly from one side to the other of said base, slanting and transverse ducts merging into single air-inlet openings on opposite sides of said base, and slanting ducts connecting at their points of intersection.

V In a flat-iron having an internal combustion chamber comprising inclosing walls, base and cover :a burner-tube in said chamher having flame-jet holesdirected toward the bottom of said chamber, said base hav ing air-inlet openings along the sides there of, having air-distributing holes situated in suitable relation to said flame-jet holes and having an air-channel connecting a plurality of said openings with said holes, and overlapping transverse baflie walls so positioned within said air-channel as to retard shifts of air therein longitudinally of said base, suitable openings being provided in the upper part of said combustion chamber to permit the escape of the products of combustion therefrom.

6. In a flat-iron having an internal combustion chamber comprising inclosing walls, base and cover :a burner-tube in said chamber having flame-jet holes directed toward the bottom of said chamber, said base having formed therein air-distributing holes and ducts extending in substantially continuous straight lines between openings provided along the sides of said base, said ducts extending from openings on either side of said base transversely to respectively corresponding openings on the opposite side of said base and extending slantingly forward and rearward to other air-inlet openings on the opposite side of said base, the Walls of said chamber having suitable openings in the upper part thereof for permitting the escape of the products of combustion therefrom.

7. In a flat-iron having an internal combustion chamber comprising inclosing walls, base and cover :a perforated burner-tube contained in and extending along the length of said chamber, suitable openings in the upper part of said chamber for permitting the escape of the products of combustion there-from, air-distrilniting holes in said base, a plurality of air-inlet openings on each side. of said base, and air ducts extending between the air-inlet openings on one side of the base and those on the other side of the base and communicating with the air-distributing holes, said air ducts having greateraggregate cross-sectional area than the aggregate cross-sectional area of the air-distributing holes, said ducts communicating transversely and slantingly with each air-inlet opening, said air ducts being numerically greater than the air-inlet openings or the air-distributing holes.

8. In a fiat-iron having an internal combustion chamber comprising inclosing walls, base and cover 2- perforated burner-tube within said chamber, suitable openings in the upper part of said chamber for permitting the es :ape of the products of combustion therefrom, and air supply ducts in said base extending in substantially continuous straightlines transversely and slantingly from side to side thereof and converging in groups at openings in the sides of said base, said groups of ducts extending slantingly and transversely from individual airinlet openings on one side of the base to a plurality of air-inlet openings on the other side thereof, adjacent slanting ducts intersecting one another intermediate said openings, air-distributing holes being provided in said base leading from said chamber to the intersecting points of slanting ducts and to the central portion of transverse ducts.

9. In a flat-iron having an internal combustion chamber comprising inclosing walls, base and cover :a perforated burner-tube contained within and extending along the length thereof, suit-able openings in the upper part of said chamber for permitting the escape of the products of combustion therefrom, said base being provided with airinlet openings and ducts and having airdistributing holes extending from the bottom of the chamber to each of said ducts, respectively, intermediate the ends thereof, individual air-inlet openings on one side of said base having two or more of said ducts leading there-from along substantially straight lines to a corresponding two or more air-inlet openings on the other side of said base therefrom.

10. In a flat-iron having an internal combustion chamber comprising inclosing walls,

base and cover :-a perforated burner-tube contained in said chamber and extending along the lengththereof, suitable openings ing forwardly and rearwardly therefrom and the ducts connecting other air-distributing holes extending substantially perpendicular to the major axis of said base.

11. In a flat-iron having an internal combustion chamber comprising inclosing walls, base and cover :a burner tube within said chamber having flame-jet holes therein near the front end thereof, the side walls of said chamber having depressions forming slots between said walls and said cover, the front end of said cover being on 'ved downwardly so that the under side of the front end thereof will meet and rest upon the top of the side walls substantially at the inside face of the front wall of said chamber, suitable air supply channels being provided in said base.

12. In a fiat-iron having an internal combustion chamber comprising inclosing front, rear and side walls, base and cover :a perforated burner-tube within said chamber extending to and provided with flame-jet holes near the front end of said chamber, the rear wall of said chamber being higher than the front wall thereof, the side walls of said chamber, from the front ends of said walls to a point near the rear ends thereof, being of substantially the same height as the front wall thereof, the front end of said cover being curved downwardly, the lower surface of said cover and the upper edges of said side walls being so relatively formed as to provide slots between said side walls and said cover, the upper and lower edges of which slots converge toward the front ends thereof and meet substantially at the inner face of the front wall of said chamber, suitable air supply channels being provided in said base.

13. In a flat-iron having an internal combustion chamber comprising inclosing front, rear and side walls, base and cover: a perforated burner-tube within said chamber eX- tending to and provided with flame-jet holes near the front end of said chamber, the rear wall of said chamber being higher than the front wall thereof and the side walls of said chamber, from the front ends of said walls to a point near the rear ends thereof,

being of substantially the same height as the front wall thereof, the front end of said cover being curved downwardly, the lower surface of said cover and the upper edges of said side walls being so relatively formed as to provide slots between said side walls and said cover, the upper and lower edges of which slots converge toward the front ends thereof and meet substantially at the inner surface of the front wall of said combustion chamber, the rear wall of said combustion chamber having a depression therein which forms an opening between said wall and the rear end of said cover, suitable air supply channels being provided in said base.

In witness whereof, I hereunto subscribe my name, this 18th day of January, A. D.,

HARRY G. HE GKMANN.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G. 

